New Zealand had faced nobody of consequence in this World Cup before yesterday. Well, they did beat England in St Lucia but that was about seven trillion years ago and, anyway, it was England and no one is entirely sure whether that counts.

Yesterday, pitted against Sri Lanka, serious final contenders, their run of nine successive ODI wins came to a halt. They fell about 40 runs short of expectations on a sound surface and then Sri Lanka, courtesy of their batting springboard, Sanath Jayasuriya, registered a comfortable six-wicket win with nearly five overs to spare. They could meet again in the semi-finals.

That New Zealand mustered any sort of a contest owed everything to Scott Styris, who might look like a pugilist but can thread the ball through the gaps when the situation demands and whose 111 not out took 157 balls, with only eight fours.

Supervising Sri Lanka's challenge impassively is Tom Moody, whose coaching reputation is burgeoning. Moody insists reports that he will return to Western Australia after the World Cup are premature. As for the ECB, it continues to damp down Moody fever while waiting for Duncan Fletcher to fashion England into World Cup winners. And they reckon in the Caribbean the English can't chill.

Moody has made Sri Lanka more resilient but Chaminda Vaas and Muttiah Muralitharan still take the wickets, Vaas with the new ball, Murali the old. Legends passed down the generations have it that their careers stretch back before this World Cup began. Vaas is slower but still swings the ball with immaculate control. Stephen Fleming was lbw for nought in Vaas' first over. Ross Taylor, in his first game of the tournament, also made nought. Peter Fulton's legside obsession ended when he ladled to deep midwicket.

Murali had to contend with taunts of "no ball" from Kiwi spectators, which is a tiresome reference to the old "chucking" allegations, as well as proof that jokes reach New Zealand 10 years too late. Murali responded with hunter's eyes, defeating Craig McMillan and Daniel Vettori on the lap. New Zealand laboured 18 overs without a four, then Jacob Oram launched one towering blow and fell short with the next. James Franklin's stand of 64 with Styris in the last nine overs provided hope.

Queen's Park tried to party - marching bands one minute, disco the next. But no one can hide the fact that restrictive, exorbitantly priced packages have left stadiums half full. Jayasuriya's 64 from 80 balls had its moments and Kumar Sangakkara found a semblance of form. The rest was an inconsequential slumber in the sun.